1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a contact of the tulip type for receiving an integrated circuit (IC) component.
2. Description of the Prior Art
A contact of the tulip type for supporting an integrated circuit or similar plug-in component generally comprises a tubular body having a closed end forming a bottom connected to a terminal provided to electrically cooperate with the hole of a printed circuit board, and an open end adapted to receive a leg of the integrated circuit which cooperates with a spring that ensures that electrical contact.
In certain existing tulip contacts, the contact in essence consists of a spring element fitted in the tubular body. This element is produced by cutting off or by rolling a metal strip of high elastic limit. Such a spring will make a contact with four or six independent sides with no preferred orientation relative to the section of the component to be connected. The contact with a pin of circular section is generally acceptable, but the contact with a rectangular section pin can be much less so. Another drawback of the inserted spring element contact is the risk of obtaining a poor connection, mechanical or electrical, between the spring and the tubular body. Furthermore, such a contact does not permit good surface treatment of the sides of the contact spring.
French Pat. No. 2,322,465 proposes a tulip contact designed in particular to receive component legs having a rectangular section, in which the electrical contact is enhanced by a transverse constriction that receives the leg and offsets it at an angle to induce torsion as it is inserted. This contact has the drawback that it cannot receive legs of dimensions slightly out of tolerance. Moreover, electrodeposition treatment of the contact surfaces is difficult.
The tulip contacts described above are generally produced by a stamping operation and are of cylindrical configuration. There presently exist machines that can make such parts by a process known as "cold forming" or "impact drawing". Such a process is described in European patent application 0,128,794. This process results in tubular elements which are not strictly cylindrical in shape.
It would be desirable to provide a tulip-shaped contact for receiving an integrated circuit which overcomes the above disadvantages.